The Council of Life
The Council of Life is one of The Five Multiversal Races. It can be argued that they are the most benevolent of The Five, but they are still very much a force to be reckoned with when threatened. History Like the others of The Five, The Council of Life was self-created at the very beginning of The Multiverse. Their job was among the most important; The Council is tasked with creating, maintaining and monitoring Lifeforms, Planets, and Universes in The Multiverse. While all races in The Five closely knew each other, they would most definitely always answer to The Council of Life when called upon. Throughout the first few thousands of years of The Multiverse's existence, it was spent in a period of experimentation. The Five were trying to find what worked best for The Multiverse and how it should be run. However, some experiments ended in bitter failure. An example of these failed experiments would be that of The Shadow King. The Shadow King was one of the very first beings in the multiverse to be created by The Council of Life. He was created to embody and serve as a natural counterweight and opposing virtue to The Light: The Darkness, therefore maintaining a balanced philosophical order. However, The Council of Life soon found that he was doing his job Too well; The Shadow King's darkness was becoming too widespread, too much of The Multiverse was becoming corrupted too quickly. Realizing that he was too unstable and unpredictable to be left uncontained, The Council Life chose to imprison The Shadow King within Shadowspace, thereby limiting his dark influence. The Multiverse and its inhabitants would soon find themselves transitioning into the Next Era of its existence. The Collect was beginning to develop an idea for a "passion project" of his, a Multiversal prison known as Ironbolt Penitentiary, with the purpose of housing among the most dangerous and destructive beings in The Multiverse. At this same time, The Xir'algath had suddenly become corrupted and power-hungry. Taghiat Quasia, the leader of The Xir'algath, launched a campaign against The Council of Life, the rest of The Five, and the entire Multiverse. The Xir'algath deliberately attacked innocent races in their attempted conquest of The Multiverse, not caring about any causalities. This was when betrayal began to brew against The Council of Life. A great war was held between two id during this time that ravaged several universes before it was stopped. The two id involved were Swordbreaker(who had been allied with The Xir'algath) and Null. At the same time, The Infinites, seeking salvation and self-preservation, chose to make a deal with The Xir'algath and ally themselves with them. At first, the Xir’algath were going to kill the infinites, but the grand high librarian of the infinites, Malls Voyers, offered to help them with their powers and knowledge. The Xir’algath eventually agreed, the infinites remade their libraries into several military bases for the Xir’algath The Council of Life chose to fight back and try to drive back The Xir'algath. This war was not without its casualties, however. Archangel Donatello- a highly regarded member of The Council of Life, and his forces were severely weakened by the Xir'algath's relentless assault. In a last-ditch effort of desperation, Donatello submerged himself in the Chao Umbra, absorbing large amounts of Xalnergy. The Xalnergy corrupted him and Donatello turned evil, allying with The Xir'algath. He then corrupted the Five Heavenly kings, turning them into demons who also allied with The Xir'algath. The battle with The Xir'algath finally ended, when The High Archangels formed The Sacred Seal to banish The Xir'algath from most of The Multiverse for a very, very, very long time. At this point, Archangel Donatello, however, managed to escape and elude persecution by The Council of Life in the aftermath. He began the Dark Lord organization, to use as a personal army, and began a fierce rivalry with Archangel Leonardo, his once-closest friend. In their final battle, Leonardo defeated Donatello, and locked him in the newly-constructed Whitegate Fortress, becoming its first prisoner. Swordbreaker soon followed afterward as another prisoner. The First Resistance Eons later, The Sacred Seal had suddenly and mysteriously been broken. Who or what was behind it remains unknown, though it had to have been someone from within The Council of Life. Upon their freedom, The Xir'algath almost immediately gathered forces to begin another invasion. They brought their invasion to the sanctuary planet of Lamurix, in the Prime Universe. However, due to the actions of the planet's resistance and The Council of Life, The Xir'algath were again temporarily defeated. This battle was not without its losses either, however, as Ayet had become corrupted and Jonathan Servastus was turned into The Gamemaster. 2059: The Invasion 90 years later, The Xir'algath were once again free to finally truly begin their invasion. The High Archangels panicked, seeing no way to intervene themselves as they were physically unable to. And so instead, they formed the MAGNUS Force from each of their essences which then bonded with a mortal man to create Magnus, a warrior to defend Earth against The Xir'algath. In retaliation, The High Council of Xir'algath chose to create a Magnus of their own: a being named Parvus. Parvus carried out her given mission easily and effortlessly, and eventually "killed" Magnus after a fierce duel. However, in reality, The MAGNUS Force had merely been separated from its host body and wandered onto another plane of existence. This dealt a significant blow to the Council's chances of winning, and they could only watch as The Xir'algath nearly destroyed The Multiverse in their Invasion. The Last Resistance The Council of Life, however, still refused to give up. They gathered together a Resistance of warriors from all over the Multiverse and equipped them with the proper knowledge to defeat and kill The Xir'algath. After Taghiat Quasia was apparently killed, The Council of Life performed a ritual to restore and repair The Multiverse. Escape from Whitegate After The Multiverse was reset, The Council of Life was faced with a new problem: they now had a sudden influx of prisoners at Whitegate Fortress. As The Council is busy working on this problem, countless other threats are raising from every angle. But the biggest threat of them all is the newly reawakened Shadow King. Social Structure/Government The Council of Life is a race of angels, also known as "Angel Knights" due to the ornate knight armor that they wear most of the time. The race is divided into multiple orders and groups, each one being considered its own unique species within the greater race. Note that the following list isn't necessarily based on how powerful each order is, as some orders are equally powered. This is more based on political rank or precedence in the race. Angels Also known as "Guardian Angels". These are just regular, standard angels within the Council of Life, and the most common. Although powerful beings in general, they are considered the least powerful in The Council of Life, and there's nothing too special about them. The original main task and function of this group were for each individual angel to watch over and protect an assigned mortal, which was how they earned the moniker of Guardian Angels. However, in more recent times they have not been able to have as much direct involvement or presence in mortal affairs, and instead carry out their work from behind the scenes on an alternate plane of existence. They possess still the standard, basic features, and abilities of their race(Primordial Energy projection and manipulation, flight, etc.) But nothing else extra or special. Powers Powers are what make up The Council of Life's army. While any angel can be considered a warrior, this order is born and bred with the specific purpose of being soldiers and fighters, willing to lay down their lives in the war against whatever enemy they may face. While only about as powerful as guardian angels, Powers have a far stronger fighting spirit. The Powers serve under the command of their advising archangel generals. Archangel Donatello was formerly the commander in chief of the Powers' military army. Additionally, some powers also supervise the movements of the heavenly bodies throughout The Multiverse, in order to ensure that the cosmos remains in balance. Archangels The archangels have a more powerful, stronger essence than standard angels. They oversee, guide and command all the guardian angels and Powers. As opposed to guardian angels, the Archangels can be in more than one place at a time. Archangels are also each meant to serve a specific purpose, and each has unique powers accordingly. Some Archangels also act as generals to the Powers. The exact number of archangels is debatable, but they are fewer in number than guardian angels. However, their power compensates for the lack of numbers. Notable Archangels include Leonardo, Raphael, and Donatello. While the High Archangels are technically considered to be normal archangels as well, they reside in a higher sphere of Political power. The Breakers The Breakers are highly powerful and skilled Archangel warriors. The group is comprised of Archangel Cassiel, Breaker of Souls, Archangel Varmiel, Breaker of Stars, and Archangel Hamael, Breaker of Skulls. Thrones/Ophanim The Thrones, also known as Ophanim, were royal guardsmen of The Grand Seraphim. As their name suggests, this order was tasked with guarding the Grand Seraphim's throne. They appear as a sort of "gyro", formed from two interlocked rings or "wheels", with many eyes lined along the sides. A being resides at the center. The High Archangels This is more of a title rather than an actual order of angels. This is the highest group of angels below the Grand Seraphim after The Five Heavenly Kings were banished. The High Archangels are made up of six archangels: Michael, Auriel, Gabriel, Nathaniel, Uriel, and Sabrael. Together, they oversee almost the entirety of The Council of Life and The Multiverse, making most of the political decisions as well as serving as direct advisors to The Grand Seraphim. Originally, The High Archangels also had a hand in influencing mortal politics in ancient times, but they have more recently retired from this function. To signify their higher role of power, The High Archangels wield powerful angelic weapons and artifacts that were given to them by The Grand Seraphim. For example, Sabrael has a powerful spellbook and Uriel has magical running shoes. The Five Heavenly Kings The Five Heavenly Kings, unlike the other groups, were not considered a unique order. They were a group of angels handpicked from all the various angelic orders by The Grand Seraphim himself and had great powers bestowed upon them to accommodate their new status and influence. They were once, in fact, the second-highest "order" of angels, right below the Grand Seraphim. The Five Heavenly Kings were a group of Five abstract beings of great power: The Magician, The Emperor, The Wheel of Fate, The World, and The Moon. Some of them were even the original owners of a few of the High Archangels' artifacts, and the Five Heavenly Kings were once the original beings who served The High Archangels' purpose. They were benign rulers, but had eventually become corrupted by Archangel Donatello and turned into hideous, monstrous fallen angels. Archangel Michael and Raphael were forced to banish them from the realm of life and cast them down into a prison in The Realm of Death, The Xir'algath's realm. The Five Heavenly Kings had many powers, but they most often wielded and commanded the arcane elemental powers respectively: Fire, Metal, Electricity, Ice and Lunar Energy. Even after their fall from grace, The Five Heavenly Kings still retained their powers that The Grand Seraphim had bestowed upon them, although as more corrupted versions. The Grand Seraphim The Grand Seraphim is the oldest and most powerful angel in The Council of Life, as well as its leader. He may also be the most powerful being in The Multiverse as well. The Grand Seraphim does not usually physically show himself and is rather most often felt as a presence. However he does have a physical body, and in the most import or dire of situations, meetings are conducted with him in person. Since he is not physically present in most of The Council of Life's affairs, The High Archangels are in place to carry out The Grand Seraphim's will. The Grand Seraphim normally appears as a cluster of large wings, with a bright white aura of light residing in its center. However, it can also manifest itself into a more recognizable and humanoid form similar in appearance to an Archangel, though much larger. The Grand Seraphim has the powers of every Angelic order and then some. He is also the physically largest angel in The Council of Life. Other Additionally, there exist other Angelic beings throughout the Multiverse, that while appearing angelic, are not "true" angels(True angels being those in The Council of Life). Some of these beings were created and modified in The Council's experiments, while others have taken on the appearance of an angel as part of their self-aggrandizement. And still there ate those who just so happen to seem angelic out of sheer coincidence. These such beings include: *Axiom *Eihnver *Saint Rellidina *"Gone" *The Sable Warrior *Magnus Biology The angels' anatomy is quite unique. Their physical bodies are in fact solidified constructs of light and energy. It is very hard to kill an angel. They can be injured, but their bodies are incredibly dense and sturdy so it would take a lot of force to even get to that point. The angels do have one vulnerability/weakness, and that is Xalnergy. An interesting note is that angels seem to react to Xalnergy similarly to how Xir'algath react to Primordial energy. However the angels are still incredibly resilient to this, and they are only really harmed by Xalnergy when it is specifically in a crystallized state, which is called "Xalnite". As for reproduction, that isn't really a necessity within the race since almost all the angels were self-created at the beginning of time. However, both sexual and asexual reproduction is still a possibility. When asexual reproduction occurs, it is at the end of an angel's natural "lifespan"(or the point at which they reach full fulfillment in life). Then, their life energies are recycled for a new being. An interesting feature of Angels, is that some mortal beings can spiritually ascend and become angels themselves, or this can be gifted to them by The Grand Seraphim if certain beings prove their worthiness. Also, angels within The Council of Life can ascend to become members of higher angelic orders, as well. Angels posses a natural command over Primordial Energy, either manipulating the energy in an environment or channeling it directly from their bodies. Flames of Healing Additionally, an ability that is unique to angels is their command over a spectrum of a type of magical fire known as the Flames of Healing, or the seven rays of light. These flames are generally non-offensive and benign, and are maibly used to the benefit of the target. Each color of the spectrum has its own unique quailty: Blue Flame: The Blue Flame is the first ray of the spectrum. The energy of this Flame is the first and final synthesis, the source of all the other flames of the spectrum. The Blue Flame is in the core of the very strength and energy. The first Ray is represented in the power of intent, cause, direction, centralization and unity, and its keynote is will - Divine Will. The basic qualities of the Blue Flame are manifested through the energies of power, strength, faith and protection. It used most notably by Archangel Michael. Yellow Flame: The yellow flame is the second Ray of light. This is a Ray of consciousness. The yellow golden flame brings the impulse for binding light and love, as well as for unifying matter and spirit. This is a Ray of wisdom, sensitivity and intuition. The energy of the yellow flame qualifies and teaches, enabling the processes of thorough synthesis, love, wisdom, enlightenmentand peace. It is used by Archangel Jophiel. Pink Flame: From the third Ray of the pink Flame can be seen the manifestation of the activities, intents, and wisdom of the first two rays: the first Blue Ray and the second Yellow Ray. Here can be seen the qualities of creativity and adjustability. Through the pink Flame the needs are expressed, plans formulated, and material is selected. This is a Ray of Divine love, tolerance, adoration, and gentleness. Archangel Chamuel is a prominent user of the pink flame. White Flame: The fourth Ray of white light (white flame), stands in the middle of the seven rays, and as such it symbolizes a central point of balance and harmony. The white Ray stimulates the creativity, art, and beauty. The white flame is especially sensitive to sounds and colors. The intuitive strength is especially emphasized, as it calls for love, life and understanding. The white ray exhibits the greatest power of purification, which is being manifested through the ability of ascending all spiritual faculties of the individual. It is used by Archangel Gabriel. Violet Flame: The Violet Flame is the most tangible and most expressive of all the seven Flames in the physical plane. It reflects the quality and relationship that exist between spirit and matter, and due to these properties the seventh violet Ray is sometimes called ceremonial or magical Ray, a Ray of rhythm, ritual, law and order, organization and group consciousness. The rhythm of the violet ray builds, integrates, manifests, and circulates within bodies. The violet ray carries along the Divine qualities of love, mercy, compassion, spiritual transfiguration and transformation, and freedom. Archangel Zadkiel, the Angel of ceremony and invocation of the Divine powers, is the most prominent representative of the violet Flame. Green Flame: The green Flame is the Flame of balance and Truth. It leads to analysis and development of ideas, especially Divine ideas. Those ideas ultimately and inevitably produce wisdom and light. The fifth Ray of light brings the energy of exploration which might eventually produce separation and crystallization. The discernment and thoroughness with which the green Ray operates produce in the mind an act of final understanding and revelation of the Truth. This is the Ray of concentration, as a manifestation of the undisturbed sustained attention, which is attained by consecration. In the green Flame can be recognized the seat of the physical healing and perfection. This color is used most notably by Archangel Raphael. Ruby Flame: The Ruby ray is a flame of love, devoted service, spiritual healing and idealism. This is a Ray of determination, abstraction and aspiration directed toward the causal areas of the being. In the core of this Flame can be found find equity, disposition towards spirituality, ability to experience inner light, capacity of recognizing good. The basic attribute of the sixth Ray is the quality of peace, attained as a consequence of understanding and accepting the truth, and only after the previous total consecration and dedication. It is used by Archangel Uriel. Category:Characters Category:Lore Species